"Will He Stand Up? Kerry and Haiti"

By Ben Terrall

The hundreds killed this week by tropical storm Jeanne provided Haiti another brief appearance in the U.S. media, but with little context or discussion of the murderous regime now in power. Nor did any reporter point out that when U.S.-backed Prime Minister Gerard Latortue said, "We don't know how many dead there are. 2004 has been a terrible year," he wasn't referring to death squads his coup administration unleashed.

Haiti provides one of the clearest opportunities John Kerry has to distinguish himself from George W. Bush. Unlike the ill-advised pro-war corner he has painted himself into on Iraq, Kerry never supported the International Republican Institute-orchestrated February 29, 2004 coup that drove President Jean-Bertrand Aristide from office. In fact, Kerry provided one of the more perceptive comments about Haiti policy, saying the Bush Administration has "a theological and an ideological hatred for Aristide."

Full Article : counterpunch.org